The Night Walkers
by Lady Hiko
Summary: A terrible accident has befallen a group of amazons, turning them to stone. The magic in this world is running out, will Serenity be able to find help before it does, or will she and her friends forever remain in stone?
1. Default Chapter

Tittle: The Night Walkers  
Author: Lady Hiko  
Email: ladyhiko@yahoo.com  
Chapter: Prologue  
  
It began a thousand, no, nearly a millennia ago. Yeah, that's right. It was during the age of magic, the age of power...the age of Amazons.  
Now I bet you're wondering what this has to do with Amazons? This is called Night Walkers for crying out loud! It has * everything * to do with Amazons. Well, five of them at least.  
  
``````  
Around a millennia ago, the world was filled with magic, and the most skilled in this craft were Amazons, women tribesmen. Their entire tribe consisted of women; a man's paradise, if he'd live that long. Let's just say that they didn't want men near them unless absolutely necessary.  
They lived in the Amazon, of course, and were very skilled fighters, nary a man could beat them.  
Now here is where the Night Walkers come in. You do know what a Night Walker is, right? No? Then let me explain.  
There were Amazons of great power in the Kage tribe, five of them in fact. There was the great Rei of Soul, the powerful Makoto of Strength, the remarkable Ami of Intelligence, the vivacious Minako of Love, and the leader of the bunch, the illustrious Serenity of Light. These were the realms that they were most skilled at, these inventors five, and they took delight in experimenting with the power within their realms.  
  
Well...Sometimes experiments go awry. It happened when they were combining light and love, but a little soul got mixed in. Normally these three work well together, but as I said, something went awry. With the soul, came exploding light, and by dawn, they were not the same.  
Stone they turned, these five. Though truly, they were still quite alive.  
And in the morning, when the other Amazons came, they didn't realize they were one in the same. A sign from the gods they claimed. For so quickly these statues came, at once in the name of the gods they were renamed.  
Mars and Rei were now one in the same. Venus and Minako were now part of the game. Jupiter became Makoto's new name, and Mercury was Ami's new name. But one was left you see, one that didn't fit in with the average gods they believe. The one you see, was Serenity, who was eventually believed to be the moon goddess Selene.  
These statues, they believed, were the work of the gods. Their beliefs were proved true in their minds, for every morning they weren't in the same place as last time. Under the moon they came to life you see, and with that they became paler than you or me. That is how the Night Walkers came to be.  
  
````  
Now you're probably wondering, who is this man talking to me? How does he know this much about the Night Walkers?  
I am Prince Endymion of Olympia. Still you ask, how do I know so much about them if I live so far away? Well, I met one of them, even though I didn't know it then. 


	2. Chapter one: Night Walker

Tittle: The Night Walkers  
Chapter One: Night Walker  
Author: Lady Hiko  
Email: ladyhiko@yahoo.com  
Rating: PG.  
  
Flash  
Crimson light...  
And then...  
  
`````  
  
Darkness. That's all I could feel for hours on end. No longer could I feel the light that surrounded me, engulfed me...comforted me. No, it was all gone.  
I all ways felt cold, so cold. I never saw the sun anymore, never felt the warm breeze of dawn. I only saw the cold, harsh moon, or no moon at all. That's a funny thing after all, for you see they believe that * I * am the moon goddess, Selene. As you have probably guessed by now, I am the 'Night Walker,' Serenity. It is funny to be the Keeper of Light and be kept forever in the realm of darkness. Yep, just my luck.  
I honestly wouldn't believe it myself, except for that everytime I would awake, I would find food and various gifts at my feet, buried in rubble. I would be in the middle of the forest to find these items too. I thank whoever does this, for without them, I'd starve. I honestly cannot get a job with my "condition". Oh yeah, what would I say? "Sorry sir, I must go. I..." and then turn into stone? Oh yeah, that would go over well.  
Now you're probably wondering, why am I talking like this? I am supposed to be an "ancient one", and, by all logical terms, I should be dead. Well, my petrified state has preserved me all of these years. I guess the stone keeps me from aging, as well as all of my friends. Poor Ami, she tried to warn Rei, but she too was caught by the blast.  
Now there is a point to our dreary existence, and a reason why we migrate northward, even if we've been separated by accident the past few hundred years. As every one hundred years go by, the magic within our world decreases, disappears. It didn't seem bad at first. I mean, at first, it was just the unicorns, but then it was the griffins, and finally, the only dragons left were the Kimonos. The only place left in the world, untouched by the depletion of magic, was way up in the north...a place called Olympia. So this is why we travel, and hopefully we will all meet there. Perhaps and hopefully someone there will be able to help us with our... "predicament," before all of the magic is gone, and so are we.  
  
~~~~~Endymion~~~~~  
  
The illustrious moon shone brilliantly tonight, perfect for the hunt. It is mid to late June, the time for the annual hunt of the Prongs. Prongs are mystical deer-like creatures. Their bodies are a ghostly silver-white and they only come out at night. They're barely visible to the naked eye, so you more like sense them by the glistening pale white wisps of themselves they sometimes leave behind. They move like shadows within the night, leaving nary a sound nor footprint. That's what makes them such challenging game.  
My bow stretched across my chest, quiver full of arrows, and my sword dangling at my flank, I set out for the hunt.  
The world is so different after the sun has set. The night, it has a rhythm, a life all of its own. Velvet purple dances on past in wisps in the wind, while heart thundering blue creeps from the shadows and thunders within you. It is filled with music that you hear not with your ears, but with your heart, with your soul. That is night. So fragile that the moonbeams weaken it. Destroys the magic of night with magic of its own. The magic of light destroys night. But you see, without darkness, there is no light, no day. Yet it has been told, that without light, without day, darkness, night in its truest form can still exist.  
That is where the Prongs exist. So that is why I hunt in near darkness, save the light of the effulgent moon.  
  
Sweet music, not of the night fills my ears. It sounds so sad, yet so divine...enchanting...like a siren's song.  
Beautiful.  
I must follow it. The sweet song gets louder and louder as I near the river. A radiating white glow clouds my vision.  
A prong!  
My bow bounds from my chest, an arrow within as I turn to take aim at the wispy glow. The enthralling music stops and my vision clears. No Prong exists in front of me, but a glorious maiden. One so pale that she melded within the moonlight, radiating its heavenly glow. Had she not ever been within the light of the sun? Oh, but her hair, that was equivalent enough. It appeared to be made of the light of the sun itself. Even within the light of the moon, it radiated gold, as though mid day.   
Was that music her voice?  
Was she truly a siren?  
Those eyes, those beautiful jeweled saffire eyes...they're looking at me in uttermost terror, panic, planning...Possibly planning an escape route?! What have I done?! I don't want this apparition to leave!  
I look down and realize I still have my arrow pointed at her.  
  
~*~*~*~Serenity~*~*~*~  
It was a pitiful moon out tonight. Not even full. Oh well, at least no one should see me while I bathe. The water is so cold, it chills me to my bones, but it is not as cold as when I sleep...nothing could be as cold as that.  
Oh, maybe I am just depressed; a few hundred years of solitude can do that to a person, you know.   
I just feel so sorrowed, and a melody fills my heart, a melody I learned so long ago, within a language I have almost forgotten. I release that melody through my voice, savoring each sorrowful note. It soothes me, just like the wind, the wind of morning of which I'll never feel again. (Author's note: Think of the ending music to Outlaw Star. If anyone has the lyrics, please send them to me. Arigatou)  
Suddenly I snap out of my trance. Something is wrong. Something is coming...something is near. I hear, no, more like feel the bushes wavering not to far. Shit! I cannot run to my clothes, they are on the other side of the bank.  
  
A nearby rock! Perhaps I can hide my form behind there!  
An arrow peeks between the brush, then a bow, until I can see a man heavily suited within luminous raven armor. It is too dark to distinctly see his face though.  
He's spotted me! Shit! Gotta get out of here! Gotta go!  
He begins to walk towards me. Don't tell me he...he's...gonna...  
  
~~~~~Endymion~~~~~  
My eyes grow wide, my jaw falls off its hinge, and my bow and arrow fall to the floor at the vision before me. The maiden is no longer in concealment, but charging at me...completely nude.  
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" she yelled, streaking past.  
(Author's note: Think of a woman yelling like a full-blown linebacker charging past.)  
  
  
  
*~*~*~*~Serenity~*~*~*~*  
  
He is *not* going to get me. Not him, not anyone ever again!  
There's only one thing left for me to do...  
CHARGE!  
  
I stuck my arm out, trying to knock him down, but missed.  
  
  
Oh well, my clothes are only a few more feet ahead...  
Got them!  
I ran, streaking through the trees, while putting my clothes on, my heart racing as I am almost out of range...  
My heart sinks as I try to stop my flight, for a wall of thorns loom over me.  
Skid...  
Crash...  
Thud...  
The pain...it's all around me, within my every limb...I have to get out...get free!  
I try to get up, to get out of my entangled predicament, but the burning, searing pain within my ankle keeps me from standing.  
~~~Endymion~~~  
I was awoken from my stunned stupor by a sudden cry, a cry of pain, agony...a cry of defeat.  
Where had that maiden gone?  
  
The sun was beginning to rise; something within me urged me to find her before then.  
Gold began to peak above the hilltops, and I could hear her no more.  
  
~~~~~Author's Notes~~~~~  
You know, the more responses I get, the quicker I move...Just thought I'd mention that. 


	3. Chapter two: Stoned

Tittle: The Night Walkers  
Author: Lady Hiko  
Email: ladyhiko@yahoo.com  
Chapter: 2 stoned  
Rating: PG-13 for references to violence and weird little thoughts passing through Serenity's head.  
~~~ Chibi hi ~~~ means the point of view switches to an all knowing narrator.  
  
I followed her tracks to where she would have been, the strides getting fuller with every step. Where was she running? Suddenly the tracks were gone, leaving only a gargantuan wall of thorns rising high into the glistening yellow sky.   
  
And then I saw it, a sight to be seen. There, before me, bearing a robe of elegant thorns, stood the moon goddess, Selene, the one I was taught to pray to every night in hopes that the people of the moon could restore our world back to its previous majesty. With the light of dawn, her marbled features gave off such a heavenly glow; I was nearly brought to my knees.  
Her creator, whoever it was, did a brilliant job. Never has an artist created such majesty, such realism. The statue seemed almost alive, as if I were to nudge her, she would come to life, and fall asleep within my arms, gracing me with her beauty.  
Still, I wonder, who would leave such wondrous beauty to be unseen, protected from the still magical world amongst the thorns? And yet, I wonder how did the sculptor capture such serene beauty, or why did they cast the moon goddess in such sleeping stupor?  
  
...  
  
Since I think no one will miss her, I shall send someone to bring her in before nightfall. I need something to cast me into Morphious's embrace, so why not the inspiring image of Selene?  
  
^.^******************Serenity*******************^.^;;  
  
  
The world around me slowly came back into focus, but something seemed amiss. The usual darkness did not greet me, but a golden glow. And what is this? No usual coldness, but entrancing crackling warmth?   
The clouds within my vision gone, and I discover that I am not in my usual forest, but within a man's bedchamber. That can't be right!  
But it 'tis, for when I peered around, low and behold, there before me is the hunter, asleep in his bed! I was in such a shock that no longer was I enrobed in thorns, for they had crumbled to my feet.   
It took a few seconds for my brain to register the pain.  
"YEEEEOOOOOWWWWWWWW!!!!!"  
The hunter stirred.  
  
  
#*#*Endymion*#*#  
  
A holler awoke me from my sleep. No one is supposed to be in here while I slumber!  
I opened my eyes with the words "Get out!" embedded into my lips, only to fall off with the rest of my jaw in shock.  
Within my room, where the moon goddess statue stood, was my maiden, my siren, rocks crumbling at her feet.  
But wait a moment, that can't be. It would have to mean...No, it can't be!  
  
~~~Serenity~~~  
  
"Night Walker..." he whispered, eyes bulging at the sight of my form.  
"Hmmm? I'm sorry, I didn't hear you. Could you speak up please?" I asked, trying to convey innocence, trying to convince him that I wasn't a, well, Night Walker. I have seen too many witch trials, and didn't feel like partaking in one. To smell the burning, rotting flesh just after the ceremony. To be at center stage upon the stake. Oh yeah, that would go over well.  
"You're a Night Walker..." He whispered as he got up, walking towards me as though he was wishing to touch me.  
  
  
~~~~~~~~Endymion~~~~~~~~~  
  
I don't know what I was doing. All I could think was, so beautiful, is she real? If only I could touch her...  
It was like as though my body had a mind of its own. Even if I wanted to stop, to back away from what looked like thoroughly silky hair, I couldn't.  
"No! Stay away from me!"  
Now *that* broke me out of my trance.  
The maiden was now heavily breathing, body pinned against the wall out of her own accord, with a hand extending in front of her...in front of me, trying to stop me.  
"Yoooouuuu! Stay away from me! I will not let you hurt me!"  
  
I paused to think.  
  
  
*~*~*~*~*~Serenity~*~*~*~*~*  
  
  
The hunter stops suddenly, contemplating something.  
  
**  
Earthen hands...coming towards me...  
  
Scream!  
Filthened hand over my mouth...cutting out the sound of my cry...  
  
Hands...all over me...  
  
**  
"NO!"  
And then the world went black.  
  
````  
I awoke several hours later, I think. It was still night, but what am I saying. It can be any night, for I am awake only at night. Oh well, no matter. What really mattered, is that the burning in my ankle is nearly gone, and I am not freezing, but warm, despite the cool compress on my forehead.  
But the most interesting thing of all, was that I was in a man's bed...  
  
Gulp!  
  
My heart raced and breath quickened as I felt for my clothes.  
  
I glanced to each side and thanked Kami, for he was not next to me.  
  
The hunter came waltzing back, whistling a tune, while carrying a tray in hand still in his nightclothes. His face appeared to light up when he saw me awake.  
I wonder why?   
"Good," he yawned. "You're awake."  
  
~~~Endymion~~~  
  
She pulls the covers tight around herself and I roll my eyes.  
  
"You know, I'm not going to hurt you."  
"How am I supposed to know that?!...You...You liar!" she spat at me, hand shakily pointing in my direction. " I *know* what *all* men want, and you're not getting it from me!"  
  
" I don't know, what *do* all men want?" I asked.  
She looked at me in surprise at first, but less than a moment later she was back to glaring daggers at me.  
"You know very well *what* I mean!"  
"No, I don't," I replied in an even tone.  
She began to stand upon my bed, her small form shaking in rage.  
"Every man wants any pretty woman to be his own personal shabaroshi, and I'm no exception!"  
With that her ankle gave out and she fell back upon my bed.  
"Well, in case you haven't figured it out, I am not like other men. *I* don't want to take advantage of you," I sincerely replied, continuing my journey towards her with the tray.  
This time my advance caused her to take flight off the bed, but that old ankle of hers sent her crashing down to the floor with a resounding thud. A sigh of defeat escaped her lips as I lifted her back to her feet.  
" You know, you really shouldn't stand on that ankle of yours. It's twisted pretty badly."  
"Eh what do you care. You're just a man, simple as that. All we women are to you are just toys.'  
" If I wanted to take advantage of you, why would I be trying to help you?"  
"Why did I wake up in your room?"  
"..."  
"Also, in case you haven't noticed, you're helping me to your bed."  
"Fine, then where would you like to go?"  
" Outside."  
"Not with that ankle."  
" Fine. Then that chair over there, by the fire."  
I escorted her to the chair, but being as 'independent' as she was, she jumped from my arms landing with an echoing thunk half in and half out of the chair.  
"Are you SURE you don't want my help?" I asked, honestly concerned.  
"I'm fine," she replied with a grunt pulling herself onto a chair.  
Finally settling herself in, I decided to ask the question that had been bothering me all night.  
"So, what's it like?"  
"What's what like?"  
"Turning into stone."  
"Oh...what time is it?"  
Glancing over to the water clock in my room I replied, "A little before five. Why?"  
"Give me your hand."  
"Huh?"  
She then snatched my hand.  
  
~~~Chibi hi~~~~  
  
And then the slowly rose over the ridge, pouring onto the pair, slowly encasing them in stone as panic was set into Endymion's face.  
In the morning the servants came to find their prince only to find the statues, leaving them stumped.  
  
  
~~~~ Author's notes ~~~~  
  
Yeah, I know, bad place to leave off. But what do you expect at 1:49 am?!  
  
Anywho, email me!  
  
~Lady Hiko  
Wow! Three chapters in one night! That must be a new record! 


End file.
